White Sea by Martine Micallef

Lemon, Bergamot, Rosemary, Lavender, Patchouli, Geranium, Ambergris, Iris, Musk.

Martine Micallef's White Sea possesses a seriously good opening accord of Citrus and spicy Lavender. While this quickly dissipating accord envelopes you immediately after application, the Iris note is already swimming to the surface for a breath of air. Like Yellow Sea, the construction is on the dense side and makes me feel like I'm wearing something well made. Most of Martine Micallef's creations are, in fact, well made and off the beaten path. That's a good thing, but the marketing is another ball game altogether. It's like professional parfumeurs make something of substance, then relinquish it into the hands of amateurs for sale to the public.

White Sea doesn't remind me of the "sea", nor does it bring up images of seashores, wooden decks and the smell of brine. Personally, I could care less if a name doesn't correspond with the aroma. White Sea happens to be a very nice scent that's marketed to Men, but I think it's way more versatile than that. It's a two stage, spicy citric-lavender that eventually succumbs to the ever striving Iris. There's accents of earth tones and Geranium and they're tuned intelligently.

White Sea also isn't boisterous.Projection is moderate after 5 minutes or so, with longevity approximately 4 hours on me before morphing into a skin scent. There's subtle resin in the background during the base and drydown, but the Iris is the star here. Thumbs up from Aromi for Micallef's White Sea and as always, a sample wear is recommended before purchase.